Dr. Victor Kwame Agyeman
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Position: Director
Tel:+233-3220-60122/60123/60373
Dr. Victor Kwame Agyeman graduated with a BSc (Hons) in Natural Resources Management in 1985 from the Institute of Renewable Natural Resources (IRNR), of the University of Science and Technology, Ghana. He was among the top 2% of people graduating in his class.
After graduation, Dr. Agyeman joined the Forestry Research Institute of Ghana (FORIG) for his national service. Subsequently, he studied for his M.Phil degree in Silviculture and Forest Management. Dr. Agyeman obtained a Sigma ψ research grant, which is a prestigious award from the United States of America (USA) for young scientists, to undertake his MPhil. research work. He obtained his PhD in Tropical Forest Ecology in 1994 from the University of Aberdeen, Scotland, U.K.
Dr. Agyeman was appointed Assistant Research Scientist of the Forestry Research Institute of Ghana (FORIG) in 1987, Research Scientist in 1990, Senior Research Scientist in 1996 and Principal Research Scientist in 2004. Dr. Agyeman was appointed the Director of FORIG in 2007 and has held that position to date.
Currently, Dr. Agyeman is one of the leading authorities on Tropical Forest Ecology of Africa.
PUBLICATIONS
Dr. Agyeman has authored One Hundred and Six (108) edited publications and Reports, comprising the following:
- Twenty-two (22) papers in Refereed International Journals
- Nine (9) Research Series Books
- Six (6) Monographs
- Twenty-five (25) edited Papers in Conference Proceedings of International meetings
- Thirty (32) edited Research and Technical Reports
- Five (5) edited International Conference Paper Abstracts
- Nine (9) unedited conference papers and posters
PROJECT DEVELOPMENT
- Leader of the Ghana Team that formulated the Community Forestry Management Project (CFMP), which had a total budget of US$10 million. The CFMP was Co-Funded by the African Development Bank (AfDB), Global Environment Facility – Small Grants Programme (GEF-SGP) of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Government of Ghana. The CFMP was implemented by the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources (MLNR). The duration was January 2004 to December 2010
- Leader of the Ghana Team that submitted a Concept Note to the African Development Bank (AfDB) and Japanese Government for the implementation of a US$10 million Green Ghana Initiative (GGI), under the overall framework of the Japanese Government’s Programme of Green Africa Initiative (GAI). Ghana is one of 3 countries that have been selected, together with Kenya and Rwanda, to benefit from the Green Africa initiative. The Team is currently developing the Project Document for Co-Funding by the African Development Bank (AfDB) and the Japanese Government. The Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources (MLNR) is the implementing body.
- Representative of the Ministry of Environment, Science and Technology (MEST) on a National Team of Experts selected to formulate a US$72 million Forest Investment Project (FIP), a climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation Project, which has been accepted for funding by the African Development Bank (AfDB) and the World Bank. An amount of USD 250,000 has been released by the Development Partners to finance Pilot Activities and to help formulate the main Project. The Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources (MLNR) and the Ministry of Environment, Science and Technology (MEST) are the implementing bodies and the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning (MoFEP) is the co-ordinating body.
INTERNATIONAL EXPERIENCE AND ACHIEVEMENTS:
- Member of the Governing Council or Board of Trustees of Six (6) International Bodies, Namely TPFQ of IPPC, PROTA, AFF, VICRES, ITTO Expert Panel, UNFF Expert Panel
- Member of a Team that represented Ghana at the United Nations (UN) for the negotiations for an International Arrangement on Forests (IAF) in 2005 and 2006.
- Member of a Team that represented the country at the FAO Committee on Forests (COFO) in Rome, Italy in 2005.
- The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) of the United Nations (UN) contracted Dr. Agyeman in December 2004 to develop an African Position Paper, which was presented by Ministers of State for Forestry and Heads of Forestry Organisations in Africa at the 17th Committee on Forestry (COFO) in Rome in March 2005 and also served as a working document for the African Position during negotiations at the Fifth United Nations Forum on Forests (UNFF5) in New York in 2005.
- The African Development Bank (AfDB) contracted Dr. Agyeman as the lead Consultant to undertake a “Forestry and Natural Resources Management Support Study for Liberia” in 2010. The study was a Sector Strategic Analysis.
- Served as a member of Six (6) different “Panels of Experts” under the auspices of the International Tropical Timber Organisation (ITTO) of the United Nations (UN) in 1996, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2010 and United Nations Forum on Forests (UNFF), UN Secretariat, New York in 2006.
- Selected as one of eleven (11) distinguished personalities, including the former Nigerian Head of State – General Abdulsalami Abubakar, to deliver a series of 11 lectures in commemoration of the 40th Anniversary of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) in 2003.
- Awarded a Rockefeller Foundation Fellowship/Grant to give two lectures at Tufts University in Boston, USA in 2002.
INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCES AND WORKSHOPS
Between 1994 and 2010. Dr. Agyeman participated in over 50 International Conferences and study visits, outside Ghana, in Ten (10) African Countries, four (4) Asian Countries, Eight (8) European Union member states, Three (3) Latin American Countries, the USA and Australia.
CURRENT INTERESTS AND PROGRAMMES
Currently, Dr. Agyeman has a PhD in Tropical Forest Ecology and a Degree in Law (LLB). On-going research interests include natural resource ecology, policy, legislation, governance and management.